Tsvangirai says Mugabe is a tyrant

Biti says Mugabe is tired

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Biti says Mugabe is tired

Finance Minister Tendai Biti told a United States embassy official that Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai should take a tougher stance on President Robert Mugabe and the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front because Mugabe was tired.

He met Donald Petterson, the charge d’affairs at the United States embassy, on 21 September 2009 and told him that while most ZANU-PF officials wanted the inclusive government to fail, Mugabe did not.

According to a diplomatic cable just released by Wikileaks Biti said Mugabe did not want the inclusive government to fail because a failed government would be bad for his legacy. Besides, he did not want to fight a Movement for Democratic Change attacking him from outside the government.

He said the MDC would continue “chipping away” at ZANU-PF, which he characterised, like Mugabe, as “tired.”

In his commentary after the meeting Petterson said although Biti had been very sceptical of the inclusive government, he was now firmly behind it.

“The fact that he supports remaining in the government and believes most MDC supporters do as well, albeit with a more assertive posture vis-a-vis Mugabe and ZANU-PF, is a strong indication that despite press reports of MDC dissatisfaction with the GPA and consideration of leaving government, the MDC will remain in government for the long haul,” he said.

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The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.